This is a love story……………. It can not be defined as anything else.
IF YOU BUILD IT THEY WILL
COME
By Vince Patton
Statue of Douglas Monroe located at the CG Training
Station, Cape May, NJ
Official U.S. Coast Guard Photo
Greetings all....
As I sit here in my Seattle hotel room continually
bursting with pride and joy after having witnessed a group of sterling examples
of chief petty officers who have raised the bar on setting the standard of
fulfilling the commitment of living the Chief Petty Officer's Creed, I can't
help but put my thoughts together in words. On Monday, 27 September, I
had the privilege and pleasure to participate in the Munro Gravesite Flagpole
dedication ceremony in Cle Elum, WA. As you recall, this event was the
pinnacle of a successful effort put together by the Seattle Chapter, CPOA,
spearheaded by the proactive efforts of their chapter president, RDCM Mark
Brown.
If I may, I'd like to do a quick synopsis of what
led up to this joyous day of reaffirming our service's commitment to embracing
our history, heritage and tradition. Please forgive me for indulging with
a somewhat lengthy email to address my point....
The genesis of this project began on November 11,
1998, when an article appeared in the Seattle Times, of a heartwarming story of
Douglas Munro's childhood friend, Mr. Mike Cooley. Mr. Cooley kept a
personal vigil over his close friend's grave, personally raising and lowering
the National Ensign every day without fail for over thirty years. This
human interest story told of how Mr. Cooley took the long three mile walk from
his home everyday to the cemetery to conduct "colors" honoring his
fallen friend and hero. He never missed a day conducting this solemn
ritual so that Munro's deed will not disappear. According to his
daughter, Mr. Cooley suffered from pneumonia three years ago, yet he still
"stood the watch" twice a day, however his daughter had to drive him
back and forth, allowed him to execute his mission, then return home back to
bed to convalesce. Mr. Cooley was truly a remarkable man who was totally
committed to keeping his friend's legacy alive, even he had to do it
alone.
This particular article was forwarded to me by the
reporter, Ms Michelle Malkin, after she had received a copy of a speech I had
given, talking about my initiatives of bringing the history of Munro to the
forefront. After I read the article, I passed it on via the CMC network,
with a little help through my good friend Norm Paulhus' "Norm Net"
which many believe guarantees email distribution to the universe. It
wouldn't surprise me in the least if the great Creator himself is on Norm's
bang list.
Within days of forwarding the Seattle Times
article, I immediately received an outpouring of emails responses throughout
the Coast Guard and beyond, asking if there was something that we could do to
help Mr. Cooley. Judging from the article, he was getting up there in
years, and his days of standing the watch would soon be over. Mr.
Cooley unfortunately died in August of this year after a long illness at the
age of 81. He lived long enough to know that this day would come where he
would be "formally relieved of his duties," and this project was well
underway to his satisfaction. My spiritual guess is he thought it was
time to watch the completion of this project, and enjoy the dedication ceremony
along next to his close friend Doug Munro.
It was then suggested that we look into finding a
way to light the flagpole, so the flag would remain flying. I inquired to
MCPO Dave Ojeda, the D13 command master chief to see if he can have someone
take a look at the gravesite to see if it was possible. As is with just
about anything you need done in the Coast Guard -- you simply "Ask the
Chief!" This statement was immediately validated as the D13 chiefs
took action immediately. Upon a site visit by several of the D13 chiefs,
they found that the flagpole had stood its test of time and was soon worn for
wear. Through Mr. Cooley's own efforts to keep the flag flying he had
jury-rigged it dozens of times to keep it together. The consensus from
the chiefs was the cemetery needed a new flagpole. The other obstacle in
this idea was there was no source for power to have a lighted flagpole.
To a Chief,
obstacles are merely minor inconveniences which provide opportunities to
conquer.
Through the update of the status of this initial
project, I had passed it on to the CMCs, who of course continued to keep others
informed of what was going on. No doubt about it, this project took on a
life of its own, where the true meaning of "Team Coast Guard" in
addition to the D13 chiefs were more than willing to help. The facilities
engineer at ISC Portsmouth offered up the opportunity to get an excess property
flagpole that came from Governors Island. However because the cemetery
was not government owned/operated, we had to follow the excess property
procedures. There laid an obstacle where another government agency was
waiting in the wings to take ownership of it.
To a Chief,
obstacles are merely minor inconveniences which provide opportunities to
conquer.
After the field received this update of not so good
news, the Yorktown Chapter CPOA offered the suggestion to buy a new flagpole,
which came to the amount of approximately $3,000. Again, "Team Coast
Guard" went into action, in addition to the donations given by the local
CPOA Chapters, many others joined in, including individual donations from
chiefs, officers, other enlisted members, civilians, auxiliarists, Coast Guard
veterans, retirees and family members. The amount was raised so quickly,
I don't think anyone kept track of the pace of how fast the donations poured
in. The next obstacle was getting someone to put the flagpole in, this
included getting some assistance and permission from the cemetery.
Somebody had to make this happen - especially when the nearest Coast Guard
installation was over 80 miles away. To a Chief, obstacles are merely minor
inconveniences which provide opportunities to conquer. .
In a matter of days after this project's plan began
to materialize, dozens of chiefs from the Seattle area and the entire crew of
Aids-to-Navigation Team, Kennewick, WA drove hundreds of miles over a course of
several days in a pilgrimage of sorts to Munro's gravesite. They did this
on their own time and at their own expense, surveying the site and visualizing
at what challenges would lay ahead of them. There was no source of power,
which had to be done, with some cooperation and assistance from the local power
company. Equipment and supplies had to be sought to build the foundation
of the flagpole. There were other countless number of
"challenges" that would have to be overcome to make this project a
reality. To a Chief, obstacles are merely minor inconveniences which
provide opportunities to conquer.
As timing is always perfect, another initiative was
in the making at the same time. The VFW Post in Cle Elem which by the way
bore the name of Douglas A. Munro, had been trying for a number of years to
erect a memorial veterans' wall that listed names of fallen servicemen who died
in past wars from the State of Washington. A similar wall did exist at
one time attached to the side of a building in the state capital of Olympia,
but through neglect in upkeep, the wall was taken down and stored in a
warehouse. The VFW Post had made numerous attempts to retrieve it and
erect it in the local cemetery which a large number of deceased veterans are in
their final resting place. RDCM Brown coordinated with the VFW post to
work on getting the wall erected - which was to be placed just a few yards from
Munro's grave. The problem, the VFW members were elderly and unable to
accomplish the task of constructing the wall site. To a Chief, obstacles are merely minor inconveniences which
provide opportunities to conquer.
In steps RDCM Brown, who after some discussion with
the VFW and the Seattle CPOA Chapter members, agrees to take the wall project
on in conjunction with the flagpole task. Spearheading this effort was
taken on by the entire crew of ANT Kennewick, headed up by the officer in
charge, BMC Tom Carroll. Working in a concerted effort to ensure the wall
and the flagpole site be completed together, scores of other chiefs throughout
the 13th district got involved, both active and reserve. Additional
equipment was needed, supplies, and strong able bodies. All to be done on
their own time, with no government expense. The chiefs accomplished this
without a skip in their progressive step. Additional funding to pay
for the building materials, construction, and the wall continued to come in
donations coordinated by RDCM Brown. To a
Chief, obstacles are merely minor inconveniences which provide opportunities to
conquer.
On Monday, 27 September, the 57th anniversary of
the death of Douglas Munro. The lighted flagpole and the veterans' wall
was dedicated under the clearest sky that the State of Washington had ever
seen. I recall telling someone that the traditional grey skies of western
Washington state, gave way to a picture perfect day only because Doug Munro and
Mike Cooley wanted to make sure they had a perfect view of the action.
After all, they're a lot closer to the decision-making process and outcome of
what the weather would be.
Official U.S. Coast
Guard Photos
While the event organizers, RADM Blayney and even
myself, since my office handled the RSVP list anticipated anywhere between 150
to 250 attendees, we were in for the most pleasant surprise of all. The
number swelled to well over 750. Some estimate the number to be around
800 people attended this event. All I know is, there were only 400
programs printed, and they were gone inside five minutes after they were
available to be handed out.
My quick scan of the crowd displayed a unique
diversity that the small town of Cle Elum, with a population of just under
2,500 may have never experienced before. Attendees came from all
over. They came from as far away as St. Petersburg, FL, Cape Cod, MA, San
Antonio, TX, Tulsa, OK, Southern California, to just a few hundred yards across
the street from the cemetery at the nearby Safeway supermarket. The poor
town police department of four officers and a dozen of volunteers probably
witnessed their first "traffic congestion" since the introduction of
the automobile in the town of Cle Elum.
There were young school children, high school
students, retirees and veterans who pulled their uniforms out of the closet
after so many years and wore them with pride to this event. There were
seaman apprentices to admirals, active, reserve, retired. Even Medal of
Honor recipient, Air Force Colonel Joe Jackson, USAF Ret. was there, wearing
his medal around his neck with pride which paved way for the snappiest salutes
from everyone. They came in walkers, wheelchairs and strollers.
There was probably every ethnic group prominently represented.
Retired Army Sergeant Bill Sumner, a proud Native American decked out in full
heritage attire formed up with the honor guard of chief petty officers who
stood by the flags representing every Allied nation that took part in World War
II.
Official U.S. Coast
Guard Photos
In my 18 months since I assumed the position of
Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard, there's been three occasions
where I have become so overwhelmed with such emotion that I actually had tears
flowing down my check like a baby, the USO Service Salute in New York City
after the award was read for ET2 Richard Nieman who was responsible for
rescuing over 150 people during the Grand Forks, ND flood; on Coast Guard Day
this year on Capitol Hill during a reception honoring BM2 Mark Coady, one of
the many heroes who were involved in the JFK Jr. rescue and recovering
operations; and hearing of the SAR case at Station Atlantic City, where the RHI
crew felt the value of a woman's life was worth the risk. There's about
six or so other cases that brought a lot of goosebumps and a swelling of the
eyes. This event rates right up there as a "tissue
grabber." My predecessor Rick Trent never told me this part of the
job!
There were a countless number of people that were
directly and indirectly involved with this event. Although I'm sure I'll
miss a few names, these individuals listed below are certainly the most visible
key players and are most deserving of a public thanks from me:
MCPO Dave Ojeda - D13 Command
Master Chief
RDCM Mark Brown - VTS Puget Sound
BMCM Kim Brown - MSO Puget Sound
MKCM Jeff Andrie - NESU Seattle
SKCM Ben Runez - ISC Seattle
SKCS Greg Pankau - ISC Seattle
GMC Gene Hunt - ISC Seattle
DCC Henry Conners - ISC Seattle
BMC Tom Carroll - ANT Kennewick
- and the entire crew of ANT Kennewick
Together these members made a dream a reality,
showing us all what it means to embrace our history, heritage and tradition
with confidence, competence and commitment. When you think of the words
to our core values, "Honor, Respect and Devotion to Duty" these
actions that these individuals have shown are clear evidence that core values
are real, not abstract. By their actions, it has given full rejuvenation
the importance of learning, living and caring about our Coast Guard legacy.
As you'll note below my signature block, the USCGC
NORTHLAND, along with the USCGC MUNRO and many other Coast Guard units took
time out on September 27th to first of all reflect on the life of our fallen
hero, and actively participated in a celebration of honoring Munro along with
other Coast Guard heroes who have gone before us, being the guiding light of
leadership for us to follow. There are three USMC units that I am aware
of that also took time out to celebrate the heroic efforts of Munro, Henderson
Hall Marine Corps installation in Washington, DC and the First and Third Marine
Divisions in Okinawa and Japan.
The town of Cle Elem will never be the same after
this event. Nor will I. I can assure you that I will continue to
push forward events like this throughout the Coast Guard. I know that I
have a great group of Chief Petty Officers behind me who will continue to be
the "lamplighters of our history."
This experience can be summed up in the words of
the movie starring Kevin Costner, entitled, "Field of Dreams."
It's true - "IF YOU BUILD IT, THEY WILL COME!"
All we need to do now is get
Costner to play the part of a Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer, and we're ready
to film the sequel in Cle Elum.
Semper
Paratus!
MCPOCG VWP
Official U.S. Coast
Guard Photo
